Burn Beckham Burn: A Reflection on Joe Lycett’s ‘Destruction’ of £10,000

Comedian Joe Lycett has made quite the name for himself in the recent years, in one case even literally, but his most recent antics have seen him take on former England football superstar David Beckham. Lycett took to Twitter recently stating he would destroy £10,000 of his own money if Becks did not step down as ambassador for Qatar Tourism during the 2022 World Cup. This culminated in a livestream whereby Lycett, wearing a stunning rainbow coat, appeared to follow through on the ultimatum. 

The Qatar World Cup has never quite been able to sever itself from its allegations of bribery and fraud in the bidding process, the thousands of deaths directly caused by stadium and infrastructure construction and the atrocious human rights record across the country particularly in relation to LGBTQ+ rights; public displays of homosexuality can land a 7-year prison sentence. Beckham’s deal with the Qatar tourism board, reportedly worth £10m, caused outrage among the LGBTQ+ community who noted his hypocrisy in working for an overtly homophobic, oppressive regime while being previously outspoken on gay rights and experiences surrounding football. 

It was later revealed by Lycett that the money shredded was not real; that his actions were an ‘empty threat’ designed to get people talking. He had donated the money to LGBTQ+ charities before the initial tweet was even sent. Yet, the Birmingham comedian went even further by shredding the June 2002 edition of Attitude magazine, the first gay magazine to feature a Premier League footballer on the cover. That footballer, you guessed it, was David Beckham, forever destroying his reputation as an LGBTQ+ ally.

During the video, Lycett commented on the criticisms levied at him before revealing the hoax. Most notably he reflected on destroying money during a cost-of-living crisis, an action he describes as “irresponsible”. Lycett proclaimed his own actions nothing more than a publicity stunt highlighting the wider issues of the World Cup hosts. Yet, the burning of actual money has been used widely as a protest tool among artists and activists alike that rightly or wrongly, evokes strong feelings amongst us all. Whenever we might see a bank note burnt, shredded, and destroyed it is only natural for us to wonder if that it could have been put to better use. It would seem Joe Lycett would agree.

But what about those who do follow through and trade wealth for artistic expression? The most notorious example, the KLF, became infamous for their artistic video in which the two members Bill Drummond and Jimmy Cauty burnt over £1million. The motives for this display, with some pointing to religious background or even more existential explanations, have never been fully understood. Even Drummond himself has expressed difficulty in explaining actions to interviewers and his own children since. The tour following the video aptly named ‘Why did the KLF burn a Million Quid?’ brought the public’s anger bubbling to the surface, eventually leading the band to put the fiery debate to rest.But the controversies raised by the KLF and, now, Joe Lycett illuminate some interesting questions about the intrinsic value of money and what we decide to do with it. To me, Joe Lycett and the KLF’s actions are comments on the social responsibility held by those with immense wealth. Those like David Beckham, who, rather than taking the money directly from a regime that oppresses the LGBTQ+ community, could utilise his wealth and influence for a sport where that community is largely ignored (in the men’s game at least).. Joe Lycett could simply have destroyed the Attitude magazine, but would it have garnered the same reaction if he hadn’t bought money into it? No, and it holds a mirror to us all: are we concerned with social issues, or does something have to be at stake for us to be?

Featured Image Credit: Sky